# Who do you guys consider a better actor- Steve Buscemi or John Turturro? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 17, 2004, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924 "2004-01-17T14:34:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Kole\_Koiott](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Kole\_Koiott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kole_Koiott)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2004, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/1 "2004-01-17T14:34:34Z")
Well, the reason i’m asking this is because they are often compared actors, and would like to know what everyone else here thought? Who’s more versatile and better at his craft? Obviously i realise, Steve Buscemi is far more popular and people know him more. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2004, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/2 "2004-01-17T14:53:34Z")
I looked up my ratings and discovered - Steve Buscemi 83.0004 - 98.4136 average 93.0405 John Turturro 82.8976 - 98.8672 average 93.0007. Toss of a coin for mine. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2004, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/3 "2004-01-17T16:14:45Z")
Impossible to answer – they both rock. But for the most part Buscemi gets a wider variety of roles. While they both can play weird and scary criminals, Buscemi often gets more unweird and unscary characters. This would seen to indicate a wider range. But then again, watch Cradle Will Rock, Brain Donors, and The Luzhin Defense. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2004, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/4 "2004-01-17T21:43:55Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > Impossible to answer – they both rock. > > But for the most part Buscemi gets a wider variety of roles. While they both can play weird and scary criminals, Buscemi often gets more unweird and unscary characters. This would seen to indicate a wider range. > > But then again, watch Cradle Will Rock, Brain Donors, and The Luzhin Defense. Funny, I was just going to say the opposite. ---
**Author:** ![Spiritus\_Mundi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c68b51/32.png) [@Spiritus\_Mundi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiritus_Mundi)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2004, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/5 "2004-01-17T21:52:32Z")
**Turturro**. I still like **Buscemi** , but easily 80% of his performances over the last several years have been recapitulations of the same 2-note performances. He hasn’t become a bad actor, just tiresomely predictable. **Pacino** has become much the same–a tired self-parody of the same emotional note. **Turturro** is, IMO, seriously under-rated. Though often typecast in teh “wierd supportig character” roles, he almost always manages to bring unique touches to his portrayal, and to show genuine human depth beneath the quirks. ---
**Author:** ![UrbanChic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9dc877/32.png) [@UrbanChic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UrbanChic)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2004, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/6 "2004-01-17T22:22:45Z")
I agree with Spiritus Mundi. Watch _Quiz Show_, _O Brother, Where Art Thou?_ and _The Big Lebowski_ back to back (to back) to see just how talented Turturro is. Or you could just watch _Barton Fink_. I do like Buscemi as an actor I just think Turturro’s shown more talent of the two. ---
**Author:** ![Stoneburg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@Stoneburg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoneburg)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2004, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/7 "2004-01-17T22:45:49Z")
Yeah, I don’t agree at all that Turturro gets a lesser range of characters. I was actually thinking about him today and the three roles I was thinking about was: Jesus - Big Lebowski. This is just **the** coolest/funnest character ever and worth watching the whole movie for. Barton Fink - Barton Fink And the role he playes in Rounders, which isn’t very good. Three completely different characters. Buscemi on the other hand seems to have been pypecasted as the quirky supporting role quite a lot lately. I’d vote for Turturro as better **actor** even though I think they’re both awesome. ---
**Author:** ![Gomez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d78d45/32.png) [@Gomez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gomez)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2004, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/8 "2004-01-17T22:48:21Z")
Id go with Turturro too. I’m a big fan of Buscemi but I’ve not seen anything of his that could eclipse Turturro’s performance in Millers Crossing. ---
**Author:** ![Titan2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecd19e/32.png) [@Titan2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Titan2)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2004, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/9 "2004-01-17T22:53:11Z")
I’ll also agree with the Tuturro bias.Possibly had to with with his earlier roles which were more diverse. With Buscemi-weird is what you’re looking for.Ex=while I liked watching Ghost Story and Buscemi’s job was decent as the schmo-I got the biggest kick out of the ending (after-before?) they starting rolling the credits. Turturro’s everyman in the quiz show (well every nerd) was dead on.As with every role I’ve seen him in. Buscemi,never for me,broke out of that weird role like Billy Bob Thorton did (I know he’s not part of the discussion) did.Like Buscemi,the first films (actually the first was Sling Blade) I saw him in were strange characters.Then I see him as the barber in the Coen’s? movie and he was perfect as the straight mild mannered guy. Maybe Buscemi just needs more exposure in those type of roles? ---
**Author:** ![heater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/858c86/32.png) [@heater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/heater)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2004, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/10 "2004-01-17T23:06:46Z")
I gotta go with Buscemi, only because I’m not familiar with the other guys work. I watch quite a few movies, and after seeing Buscemi the first time, read the credits to see who he was. I can’t say that’s happened for Turturro. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![Gadfly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/aeb1de/32.png) [@Gadfly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gadfly)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2004, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/11 "2004-01-17T23:44:16Z")
Turturro just beats him, IMO. If you want to see the both of them stealing every scene that they’re in, check out Miller’s Crossing. Such a great movie. ---
**Author:** ![Kole\_Koiott](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Kole\_Koiott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kole_Koiott)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2004, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/12 "2004-01-18T10:47:28Z")
> [@heater](#): > > I gotta go with Buscemi, only because I’m not familiar with the other guys work. I watch quite a few movies, and after seeing Buscemi the first time, read the credits to see who he was. I can’t say that’s happened for Turturro. YMMV. It’s actually the other way around for me. I remember seeing Miller’s Crossing for the first time and i didn’t know Turturro at the time, and i had to know who he was that played the part. And to this day i think that’s his greatest role. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2004, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/13 "2004-01-18T16:27:17Z")
I vote for Turturro, who can pull off weird, fidgety, on-the-edge characters as well as Buscemi, but also has the capacity for warmth and compassion (_Jungle Fever, Fearless_) that Buscemi has never really had an opportunity to show (probably _28 Days_ comes closest). Turturro has the advantage of having generally good/neutral facial features, which are easier to change into a wider variety of appearances, while Buscemi has more sickly/creepy looks that allow him to be typecast him in more marginal roles. Even when he’s in a romantic role (the very good _Ghost World_), there’s something naturally strange and awkward about the relationship. ---
**Author:** ![ccwaterback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@ccwaterback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ccwaterback)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2004, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/14 "2004-01-18T22:05:52Z")
It’s really a tough call. Turturro seems to be stuck on the “indies”, he doesn’t do main-stream stuff (and I give him a lot of credit for that, for not selling-out to do crap). Buscemi seems to do a lot of bit parts in whatever film he can get a casting. I like both of them very much. I have to give my vote for Turturro though. Does Buscemi have anything that would come close to a Barton Fink performance? ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2004, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/15 "2004-01-19T16:25:13Z")
> [@ccwaterback](#): > > Does Buscemi have anything that would come close to a Barton Fink performance? I would check out _Trees Lounge_–a small, remarkable little film which Buscemi directed and stars in. ---
**Author:** ![johnnyboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbe5ce/32.png) [@johnnyboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnnyboy)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2004, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/16 "2004-01-19T18:28:13Z")
> [@ccwaterback](#): > > It’s really a tough call. Turturro seems to be stuck on the “indies”, he doesn’t do main-stream stuff (and I give him a lot of credit for that, for not selling-out to do crap). Buscemi seems to do a lot of bit parts in whatever film he can get a casting. I like both of them very much. I have to give my vote for Turturro though. Does Buscemi have anything that would come close to a Barton Fink performance? Mr. Deeds and Anger Management? ---
**Author:** ![johnnyboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbe5ce/32.png) [@johnnyboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnnyboy)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2004, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/17 "2004-01-19T18:29:00Z")
> [@ccwaterback](#): > > It’s really a tough call. Turturro seems to be stuck on the “indies”, he doesn’t do main-stream stuff (and I give him a lot of credit for that, for not selling-out to do crap). Mr. Deeds and Anger Management? ---
**Author:** ![ccwaterback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@ccwaterback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ccwaterback)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2004, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-do-you-guys-consider-a-better-actor-steve-buscemi-or-john-turturro/224924/18 "2004-01-20T01:03:34Z")
> [@johnnyboy](#): > > Mr. Deeds and Anger Management? Apparently I have been living under a rock. I will check these out, and Trees Lounge.